go ahead - phrasal verb

go ahead

meaning and examples

We use “go ahead” for movement and for taking action. A person who goes ahead moves towards the front of a line or a group. This phrasal verb is also used when making a decision and then proceeding with a plan for an action. We also use “go ahead” when granting permission. 

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  • Can I go ahead of you? (Can I move in front of you?) 
  • We’re going to go ahead with our plan. (We’re going to do the thing we said we wanted to do.) 
  • Is it okay to go ahead? (May I do this?) 

go ahead / went ahead / gone ahead

get up

go ahead

1. go ahead: to move in front of a person or a thing. One person allows another person to go first or do something next. This is considered to be polite. 

  • Go ahead. 
  • You can go ahead of me. 
  • I let someone go ahead of me in line because I had a lot of things in my shopping car. (It’s polite to let someone go ahead of you.) 
a group of people standing on a sidewalk
  • You can go ahead of me. 
  • I let someone go ahead of me because she was in a hurry. 
  • Please, go ahead. 
group of cyclist on asphalt road
  • Bicyclists in a long bike race take turns going ahead of each other.

go ahead

2. go ahead: to take some form of action; to start, proceed or continue. 

  • We’re going to go ahead with our plan.  
  • We’re going to go ahead and do it. (go ahead + do) 
  • Do you want to go ahead with this? 
  • The company went ahead with its decision. 
  • After the doctor explained the risks involved with surgery, the patient went ahead with the procedure. 
grayscale photo of man doing tattoo
  • He went ahead and got a tattoo. 
two women in suits standing beside wall
  • They’re going ahead with their plans to start a new business. 

go ahead

3. go ahead: to give or receive permission to do something. 

  • The teacher told the students to go ahead and begin the test. 
  • She said we could go ahead and begin.
  • You can go ahead and start. 
  • The city gave them the permission to go ahead and begin construction of their building. 
  • They were given the go ahead to begin. (This sentence uses “go ahead” as a noun.) 
  • They got the go ahead. (They got permission.) 
  • We’re not going to let them go ahead with this. They will have to wait. 
a woman sitting at a desk using a laptop computer
  • Her boss told her she could go ahead and begin a new project. 
group of children taking picture
  • The teacher let them go ahead and leave school early today.  

go ahead

4. go ahead: to do something without permission; to take decisive action.  This use of “go ahead” is particularly effective with the addiiton of “just.” 

  • I’m just going to go ahead and do it. 
  • He decided on his own to go ahead and make plans for a vacation without checking with his family first.  
  • You can’t just go ahead and do this on your own. 
  • The President went ahead with a military intervention without talking with his allies first. 
  • The company has gone ahead with it’s decision to build a data center without any input from the community. 
A military tank driving on a dirt road, kicking up dust, with a soldier visible
  • Despite warnings from Europe and the United States Russia went ahead and invaded Ukraine back in 2022. 
an aerial view of a large warehouse building
  • The company went ahead with the construction of a data center despite opposition from the community. 

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